Synopses & Reviews

Review

"No one who has ever crouched fascinated over a tide pool, peering into its depths and shallows, can fail to be amazed and delighted by the beautiful pictures of those iridescent wonderlands the Hollings have pictured in Pagoo." The New York Herald-Tribune

Synopsis

An intricate study of tide pool life is presented in text and pictures through the story of Pagoo, a her-mit crab.

About the Author

Born in Jackson County, Michigan, in 1900, Holling Clancy Holling graduated from the Art Institute of Chicago in 1923. He then worked in a taxidermy department of the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago and spent time working in anthropology under Dr. Ralph Linton. During this period, he married Lucille Webster and within a year of their marriage accepted a position as art instructor on the first University World Cruise, sponsored by New York University. For many years, Holling C. Holling dedicated much of his time and interest to making books for children. Much of the material he used was known to him first hand, and his wife, Lucille, worked with him on many of the illustrations.

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What Our Readers Are Saying

Average customer rating 5 (1 comments)

I want to be a Hermit Crab. No mortgages, just move when you want a new dwelling and take it over. I like that. Pagoo (short for 'Pagurus') is a Hermit Crab. When he is born, he is no bigger than a tiny pencil dot. When you start life like that, the odds are not good. But Pagoo is one of the fortunate, not eaten by predators and growing by the minute.
This is a wonderful book to teach any child or adult about tide pools and, of course, Hermit Crabs. As I age, the less strenuous activities become more attractive. Sitting on a rock gazing down at a tide pool is now more fun, and safe, than swimming in a cold ocean. With this book, I can now identify what I'm actually viewing, all the while cheering on my Hermit Crab buddies.
Author Holling Clancy Holling wrote such simple but educational books with a flare for fun. For example, The Landlady of the Travelling Towers is a rather fat Hermit who carries barnacles on the back of her shell, where a still tiny Pagoo hitches a ride. Holling compares this creature to a rajah on an elephant, something I would never even think of doing. The artwork is fetching and the life lessons, taught early to a curious child, will take. Doesn't hurt grown-ups either.
"At times some misfortune gulps you down, and you learn only one small thing."
I want to be a Hermit Crab.
Book Season = Spring (so many shells, so little time)